Starthealthier.org is a website and mobile app that aims to help users care for their family's health by providing easy-to-understand health information and reminders. It allows users to create profiles for family members, set reminders for preventative health tasks tailored to each person's age and gender, and access curated health articles and resources. The platform applies concepts from health behavior change theories and is designed using plain language principles to be accessible for users of varying health literacy levels.

1. Starthealthier.org
Your checklist for a healthy family
Guardar la salud de su familia
Damien Leri, MS.Ed, MPH(c)
Ian Bennett, MD, PhD
Rosemary Frasso, PhD, MSc
Lauren Hallden-Abberton, BFA
Alex Tam, BASc
Amy Lee, BS, BA
Submitted for Health 2.0 and HHS, May 20, 2013

2. The
right
health
informa/on
can
be
hard
to
find
Open
searches
yield
too
much
info
and
much
of
it
is
not
at
the
appropriate
health
literacy
level
for
the
lay
consumer.
Federal
agencies
such
as
HRSA,
AHRQ,
and
ODPHP
along
with
professional
organiza/ons
such
as
the
American
Academy
of
Pediatrics
provide
well
designed
recommenda/ons
for
lay
users.
These
/ps
and
associated
in
depth
ar/cles
employ
plain
language
but
too
many
of
us
just
do
not
know
where
to
look.
Starthealthier.org
provides
a
simple
way
to
connect
with
authorita/ve
informa/on
appropriately
prepared
for
consump/on
by
parents
in
Spanish
and
English
at
a
range
of
health
literacy
levels.
* Source: http://www.rwjf.org/en/topics/rwjf-topic-areas/prevention.html
How do I stay healthy?
Open
searches
are
noisy
Opportunity
for
more
access
and
beIer
adherence
TXT4Tots

3. Starthealthier.org
Automatic (opt-out) messaging for general tips
Txt4tots messages are sent weekly, one for each child tailored to
their age in weeks.
MomsDads messages are sent monthly and are tailored to the
age and gender of the parent. This library is original content
written by family physicians with years of experience helping
parents.
The parent can opt out of either of these subscriptions on a per
person basis using the web app.
When receiving any of these messages the parent can
reply Snooze to receive the same message again three days later.

4. Opt-in messaging for personalized reminders
The user (parent) builds a checklist of prevention tasks for each child and for him/
herself. These tasks are tailored to the age and sex of each. The tasks are from
Healthfinder.gov. The tasks are categorized as habits and
appointments.
For each task the user receives reminders by email or text message. They
chooses the frequency and time of day for the reminders, with intelligent
defaults based on the guideline's official recommended frequency.
The message content was written by a health literacy expert at the University of
Pennsylvania program in Public Health. Each task has multiple messages so that
they can be rotated for freshness.
Each message can also be customized by the user.
The user can reply Snooze or Done.

5. Starthealthier.org
helps
care
for
young
children
SIMPLE
PROFILE
MANAGEMENT
Add
yourself
and
your
kids
easily
to
your
profile
and
choose
whether
you
want
to
get
Txt4Tots
messages
and
preven/ve
health
/ps
based
on
age
and
gender
through
healthfinder.gov
MANAGE
IT
ALL
Create
simple
to-­‐do
lists
to
manage
your
children
Organize
and
keep
track
of
health
promo/on
plans
for
your
kids
Txt4Tots
Each text message includes a link to an article
for further information. These were pulled from
Healthfinder.gov
The user may add custom tasks to each child (and
him/herself) and assign a recurring reminder for
it.
The user may export their data by pdf or
calendar format (this part is still under
construction).
The Health Info tab has the full collection of
articles from Healthfinder.gov (natively available
in English and Spanish).
The Social Media tab has collated content
from Twitter, mobile-optimized.
The Clinics tab has an interactive map of
community health centers, searchable by address
or zip code. Each clinic displays general
information and the distance in miles from the
search query address. It links to the phone
number, clickable from the mobile web app, and
a link to google maps for transportation
directions.

6. Starthealthier.org
applies
concepts
from
health
behavior
theories
and
rests
on
literacy
principles
² Cues
to
Ac/on
The
Health
Belief
Model
highlights
the
importance
of
external
influences
that
promote
ac/on
and
behavior
change;
including
informa/on
and
reminders
provided
by
people
we
care
about
or
respect
Starthealthier.org
lets
you
generate
cues
to
ac/on
for
you
and
your
family
² Social
Support
Has
long
been
associated
with
improved
health
outcomes
Starthealthier.org
empowers
people
to
provide
social
support
for
ones
they
love
near
and
far
² Informa/onal
Support
The
delivery
of
advice,
sugges/ons
and
informa/on
can
be
used
to
address
problems
or
inform
behavior
change
Starthealthier.org
provides
currated
and
ac/onable
informa/on
from
trusted
resources
Plain
Language
Guides
user
to
resources
that
are
commiIed
to
delivering
messages
that
are
readily
understood.
Avoids
verbose,
complex
sentences
and
medical
jargon
Hundreds
of
text
messages
developed
by
two
na/onally
recognized
experts
in
health
literacy.**
Detailed
Resources
Points
to
diagramma/c
explana/ons
where
appropriate
Avoids
verbose,
complex
sentences
and
medical
jargon
Development
team
is
recognized
for
apps
appropriate
for
popula/ons
with
low
technology
literacy**
*Ian Bennett MD PhD and Rosemary Frasso PhD!
**Winner, Health 2.0 (Knight Foundation and the FCC) Apps for Communities
Award for Digital Proficiency: For the app that best impacts people with limited
digital proficiency!

7. Starthealthier.org
features
make
it
easier
to
care
Ac/vate
Healthfinder
info
Showcase
expertly
curated
educa/onal
informa/on
from
healthfinder.gov
Spanish
Language
Starthealthier.org
is
available
completely
in
Spanish
to
make
it
accessible
a
wider
popula/on
Set
reminders
for
others
Manage
text
based
reminders
for
members
of
your
family
Record
test
results
Provide
a
place
for
users
to
mark
preven/ons
as
completed
and
record
any
test
results
for
future
reference
Variety
of
messages
Messages
developed
by
clinicians
and
health
literacy
experts
Find
Clinics
Find
loca/ons
for
nearby
providers
Latest
Discussions
Display
the
latest
news
and
discussions
on
the
twiIer
feeds
of
respected
informa/on
sources
Export
document
or
calendar
Func/onality
to
export
health
ac/vity
records
as
well
as
pushing
calendar
links
into
the
users
na/ve
calendar